ZeRo permanently banned from Twitch after admitting sexual misconduct

Calum Patterson
ZeRo infront of brick wall

Former Smash pro and content creator Gonzalo ‘ZeRo’ Barrios has been permanently banned from Twitch, after he admitted to inappropriate conduct with underage girls.

After a flurry of accusations against Barrios, he eventually “came clean” with a lengthy Twitlonger, which also said that he was ‘banning himself’ from all future Smash events.

He was also dropped by the organization, Tempo Storm, after he admitted sending “horrendous” messages to girls as young as 14. He was 19 at the time, and blames his “social awkwardness.”

Disgraced Smash Bros pro ZeRo joined Facebook Gaming
ZeRo has now been banned from Twitch.

ZeRo has since completely wiped his Twitter account (although the Twitlonger remains available), and now Twitch has wiped his channel for him, issuing what is believed to be a permanent ban.

The Amazon-owned platform responded to the copious number of allegations against streamers in May and June, stating that they would take action against streamers when they felt necessary.

Although ZeRo’s admission came on July 4, the platform has issues his ban on July 22. He had over 500,000 followers on the platform before his ban.

Twitch does not publicly state the reason for a ban, nor its length, but said in a blog post that “We’ve prioritized the most severe cases and will begin issuing permanent suspensions in line with our findings immediately.”

This ban came on the same day as that of League of Legends streamer Robert ‘Hashinshin’ Brot, who was similarly accused of predatory behavior, though has denied many of the accusations.

ZeRo also has a YouTube channel with over one million subscribers, but said that he would no longer be uploading or making any content. He also said he would cut ties with sponsors.

He was one of many Smash pro players and content creators caught up in the allegations. These included Cinnpie, Nairo, Evo founder MrWizard, commentator D1, and pro player Anti. Hungrybox also apologized for making an anonymous accuser feel “objectified and uncomfortable.”

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About The Author

Calum is Dexerto's Managing Editor, based in Scotland. Joining Dexerto in 2017, Calum has years of experience covering esports, gaming and online entertainment, and now leads the team to deliver the best coverage in these areas. An expert on all things Twitch and gaming influencers, he's also an expert in popular shooters like Apex Legends, CS2 and Call of Duty. You can contact Calum at calum.patterson@dexerto.com.